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COP28
Fusion is making a splash
COP28 | Fusion is making a splash
The 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP28, opened on 30 November in Dubai's Expo City—a sprawling conference centre built two years ago for the World Exhibition. One takeaway already is that fusion is no longer fighting for a seat at the table.
The sprawling conference centre built two years ago for the World Exhibition is hosting the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP28, from 30 November to 12 December.
Among a rash of initiatives promised by governments to "bolster clean energy and to wean themselves off fossil fuels" (Reuters), initiatives that include the promise of tripling renewable energy capacity by 2030, investment in fusion energy no longer exists at the margin.
On the second day, a panel titled "Fusion and Climate: The Conversation Continues" highlighted the current momentum in the field of fusion. The panel's makeup—with Rafael Mariano Grossi (Director General of the IAEA), Christofer Mowry (Chairman of the Fusion Industry Association and CEO of Type One Energy, a private sector stellarator project) and Laban Coblentz (ITER Organization)—was indicative of the growing consensus that increased private/public partnership in fusion is the way to move forward. The panelists discussed how this could be broadened and expanded through the IAEA's announced World Fusion Energy Group and other initiatives.
A panel on 1 December titled ''Fusion and Climate: The Conversation Continues,'' brought together from left to right: Laban Coblentz (ITER Organization), Rafael Mariano Grossi (Director General of the IAEA), and Christofer M. Mowry (Chairman of the Fusion Industry Association and CEO of Type One Energy, a private sector stellarator project).
On Saturday, the launch of a Fusion Energy Task Force was announced by the Sustainable Markets Initiative, aiming to accelerate the commercialization of fusion energy by facilitating broader market participation from both private and public sectors and industry.
The non-profit organization Energy for the Common Good is planning two panels in the week ahead on the regulatory landscape for fusion commercialization, including one at the ITER Pavilion in the Blue Zone on 5 December. Also on 5 December is the expectation that US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry will have an announcement on a fusion strategy for the United States, likely in concert with the announcement from the White House today.
Stay tuned for full COP28 coverage in the ITER Newsline.
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